Our children are now all gone off to college and married so I promised my wife I would take her to Europe for a vacation. The only problem is that I am not a rich man so I was wondering what months would be the cheapest to go to Europe that would still be enjoyable? Linda wants to go to Germany and France for about one week each. Thank you.

The cheapest times for tourism are traditionally when the weather is the worst! I would consider nicer "shoulder" months of spring or fall and stay in less expensive hotels, eat in modest cafes, etc. and keep costs down like that (rather than depending only on going in the worst months).

Going in the late Fall, Winter, and early Spring will still get you the Low-Season rates in hotels and will not be as crowded. In terms of weather, bear in mind that in Paris, often rain continues well into May so if you go during the Spring, you will probably get inclement weather. But at least it may be better than ice cold and snow? I was in France almost 2 years ago in February and the temps were still very cold (20s and 30s) with snow on the ground. But very few days of rain, just cold weather and sunny skies. I was in both Paris and in the south (Provence). You can't beat it for fewer crowds: it makes all the difference in the world to me to be somewhere without masses of humanity there too!

Thank you for the input. I think I will look for a trip in may or sept if she can wait that long?

I don't know about Germany, but I think for Paris, the cheapest would be early December and late Jan-February. A lot of that would be due to the air fare, but hotels can have slightly lower rates then, also.

However, May and Sept would be peak hotel rates, so I think you have that wrong. September in particular is about the busiest hotel season in Paris, and the highest rates. Air fare isn't probably going to be much lower than summer, either, although maybe a little if you go end of September. Hotel rates in May will be about that same rate, but things aren't quite as booked up, so you just may not have as much trouble booking a place.

So if you really want to save money by the timing, you need to be thinking different months than September or May.

It's nice if you want to go during those months, though, I didn't mean it was a bad idea. It will be nice weather and the air fare will be lower than in peak summer season, so you will save compared to then, and the hotel costs probably aren't going to vary that much by time, anyway, air fare is the big ticket.

Unfortunately, May and Sept are peak tourist months for airfare as well as hotels.

For lower expenses, you need to be looking at late Oct thru mid-March (maybe the end of March). We've traveled in several of those months---France/Italy---and had a marvelous time, despite cold weather. Found some great hotel deals. Winter has its own charms and we loved being there then. I might be a little more concerned about the cold in Germany, though.

Hi,

There are always lots of great rates for Europe in the fall and winter, from mid-September to mid-December, after the New Year until mid-March, after Easter until mid-late June. Everyone is home for school and work and prices are very reasonable. You will need to take a coat and warm shoes, but it is very magical to see Europe with frost and snow. Think about a river cruise to the Christmas markets throughout Europe!

Also, I lived in Germany for several months and did a lot of traveling in late May and early June with very few crowds and excellent prices. Vacations in Europe are at peak in late summer, but the weather was beautiful and warm for travel, riding my bike, seeing the sights and attractions.

Best Regards,
Julia

I just bought tickets for may 21 returning june 5 on Continental Airlines
Fayetteville Ar to Munich Germany for $733.00 each $1,466.00 total. I think I made a good deal using sidestep? now I need hotels and transportation to Paris. WOW I can't believe how fast this is coming together.

February is a high cost month in Europe if you intend skiing due to the little darlings being on holiday.

November & January are normally very cheap but outside of town many places close for the winter and of course the weather can be miserable and there's not much daylight.

Otherwise consider the period after Easter until the middle of May when Spring should have sprung and everything will have reopened or failing that March before Easter.

That's an excellent fare for May! I'm looking at mid-April on Continental and I'm seeing only $841 (total).

As always, supply and demand dictates. The only bargains are the months you may not want to go--that is why they are cheap.

For cheap flights in Europe - www.whichbudget.com. Pay attention to the luggage weight on teh budget airlines.

You did very well on that fare, especially from ARK! You can fly from Stuttgart to Paris Orly on HLX airlines (HLX.com). Some fares as low as 38 euros.

We've been to Germany in March and it was wonderful and we were fortunate that we had just missed some heavy snows the week before. Judging from the snow still on the ground it must have been a very cold week. We waited in few lines, even in the most popular tourist attractions, like Newschwanstien Castle. It was easy to find nice accommodations at very affordable prices. The drawbacks were that there were many things closed at that time of year but the things we wanted to do were open and March was the time we wanted to go.

We loved Germany so much we returned in the middle of Oct. and it was still very affordable. There are some threads here on Fodor's that deal with traveling on a budget. Use the search button. Spend some time at this site http://www.bensbauernhof.com.

It's a good idea to learn some of the language if you are going to travel on a small budget. Many times owners of small hotels and gasthaus's speak little to no English.

We got a great deal to Paris in Feb for my B-day one year. In Paris it's easier to travel off season because most of what you'll want to do, besides roaming the streets, is indoors. You don't have to travel in the darkest of winter to get a good deal. As already stated, May and Sept are very desirable months. The weather is warm and for people who don't have them, children are still in school. April and Oct can be iffy but IMO better and cheaper. I just don't like huge crowds.

Thank you all for your advice. I didn't know my sister's friend is a travel agent before I bought our plane tickets but she said I got a great fare. Pam got us a room from May 28 to June 4 at the Les Jardin Du Marais Home Plazza in Paris for $112.50 per night or a total of $787.50 for 7 nights. She said she has stayed there twice and it is a beautiful hotel in a nice area. The only
drawback is it does not include breakfast in the price but can be for an extra 10 euro per person per day for a full American breakfast. Would you pay the extra or just find something cheaper? Pam is working on a hotel for us in munich too but we may go to Salzburg for a day or two. I'll let you know. Thanks again for your help.

Oops I forgot. She also got us round trip tickets from Munich (MUC) to Paris (CDG) on Air France depart muc at 9:35 am arrive cdg at 11:55am May 28 returning June 4 10:35am arriveing at 12:55pm muc for a total of $247.66.
Our total air fare is only $1,713.66 so far. I am looking into renting a car to drive to Salzburg but we may fly?

Breakfast can be had anywhere- I would look at the breakfast first before deciding. What type of breakfast do you have at home?
You can take a train to Salzburg easily enough, it's about 90 minutes I think. Look into renting a car from AutoEurope.com if you rent it here you'll save money.

Breakfast can be had anywhere- I would look at the breakfast first before deciding. What type of breakfast do you have at home?
You can take a train to Salzburg easily enough, it's about 90 minutes I think. Look into renting a car from AutoEurope.com if you rent it here you'll save money.

Your in for a great time.

Hey, Dreamer, next time I go to Paris I want your wife's friend to book my hotel! That looks like an excellent deal. I like the location. There's metro very near. Lots of buses, too. Don't shy from the bus. Most first timers avoid it, but it's really easy and you'll have good options all around you.